


Right back where we started from

by nishiki



Series: Kliego Moments [6]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: 1960s, Alternate Universe - 1960s, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Bisexual Diego Hargreeves, Established Relationship, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Hurt Klaus Hargreeves, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Klaus Hargreeves Whump, Klaus gets attacked by a group of men, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Protective Diego Hargreeves, Season/Series 02, Sober Klaus Hargreeves, Soft Diego Hargreeves, Stuck in time, Time Travel, kliego - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-19
Updated: 2020-09-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:53:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26547811
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nishiki/pseuds/nishiki
Summary: After arriving in the 1960s, Klaus realizes that not everyone is as receptive to his charm as he is used to.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves/Klaus Hargreeves
Series: Kliego Moments [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1818838
Comments: 2
Kudos: 118





	Right back where we started from

The 1960s sucked. When he first arrived in the 60s all alone with Ben, he had thought that everything would turn out well. He was a chameleon. He had always been talented in the arts of adapting to any given situation he had been thrown into. Surely, he would make due. Surely, he would manage to adapt to this new time period and this new situation as well. Easy. 

Well, turned out it wasn't as easy as he thought it would be. People in the 60s were bigoted assholes and didn't react too kindly to his charm and humor. Wherever he went, people looked at him funny. Ben said it was the laced-up pants and the bowling shoes. Maybe he was onto something. Well, then there was the smell, he assumed. A couple of days back in the past and Klaus was in dire need of a shower and some proper food. He had no place to call home, no shelter, no friends, no family except for his ghostly companion. 

Ben’s nagging voice following him around didn't help much either in his predicament. His brother, that saboteur, always tempted him to talk to him in public, which, in turn, made Klaus look like a crazy person. People would cross the street when they would see him talk to thin air. In all honesty, it was a miracle how no one had yet called the cops on him or how he had not yet ended up in a mental asylum. 

The difference between 2019 and 1960 was that people in 2019 were no less scared of a crazy person talking to thin air but that they would never bother to actually do anything about that. In the 60s the sense of community seemed much stronger than in the 2010s for sure. In his time, people just wanted to go through their fucking days without getting bothered by a homeless junkie whore talking to himself. In the 60s people saw a homeless junkie whore talking to himself and thought about the safety of themselves and others if they wouldn't do something about that potential threat. 

“Okay,” Klaus groaned at last as he was walking down the main street, past a black-owned beauty shop and a corner store. “I start to believe that you _want_ to get me in trouble.”

“What?” Ben asked and had the audacity to sound honestly confused.

“Yeah!” He huffed and threw up his hands, a young woman who was walking home from work quickly hurried to the other side of the street to avoid crossing paths with him. Klaus decided that it might be best to not have this conversation out in the open, so he dove into a shadowy alley to his right. “Come on, you are always baiting me into talking to you. You _want_ me to get thrown in the nuthouse, don't you?” 

“I’m just saying you should try and find a place to stay!” Ben exclaimed with a frustrated groan. “These are the 60s! The world is a different place right now and people won’t react the same way to you as they did in 2019!”

“Yeah, no shit, Sherlock. I managed to stay alive on the streets for thirteen years, did you forget about that? Or about all those times I was beaten up or mugged?”

“No” Ben growled but there was something else to his voice, a certain kind of sadness. Klaus had tried his best to never burden himself with the thought of how his actions or his plights affected those around him, of how it affected Ben. In his defense, he had been too high out of his mind all the time to care about how Ben felt. Now that he was painfully sober, he knew that watching him burn out like a dying ember in the streets, had hurt Ben more than his brother would ever let on. “How could I forget those incidents? Which is why I want you to find a place to stay! A job would be good too - if you’d ask me.” 

“Because I had so much success with that last time.”

“You are clean now! Sober! It's not the same as back then!” Ben argued back relentlessly. “I mean, come on! This time you can actually have a job and keep it and not waste your money for drugs! We don't know where the others are or if they are alive or if we will ever see them again. This might be it, Klaus. This might be your new life - a second chance, where no one knows you and what you’ve done! Your chance to start over! The world is your oyster.”

“Don't-” Klaus bit out and bit down on the words before they could leave his mouth. “Don't … say that.”

“What?”

“That … the others might be dead.”

“I’m sorry, it's just…” Ben fell silent again as something clicked in his brain. Being dead had made him a bit slow, apparently. “Oh”

“We just … reconciled.” Klaus murmured as he lowered his gaze to the ground. He watched an ant hurry across the pavement “We just … just managed to … and now he might be dead? Just like this? _Poof_ and gone? And what if you’re right? I couldn't even say goodbye…”

“I’m sorry, Klaus, I didn't mean it … I didn't think about it…”

“Yeah…” Klaus sighed as he slid down the wall and sat down heavily on the naked ground between a trash can and a dumpster. Home sweet home. Squatting in some alley was not new to him or unusual. He had camped out in the alley where he landed for a couple of nights until some shop owner had shooed him away and threatened to call the cops on him. People in this time were so fucking hostile for no reason. “I know … I know … it's still fresh, I get it. So … this job you keep going on about … Who would even give someone like me a job?”

“You could use your charm” Ben grinned and sat down opposite of Klaus with his legs drawn to his chest and his arms resting on his knees.

“My what now?” Klaus couldn't help but cackle. “Benerino! Finally, you admit that you find me charming!”

“No, I don't. But other people do - for some reason. Maybe find a nice old lady with a nice shop and do your puppy eyes thing.”

“Maybe.”

“You’re really scared, aren’t you? That the others are dead? That Diego is dead?” Leave it to Ben to be a Debby-downer. Leave it to Ben to always keep reminding him of the worst possible thing that could have happened.

“Yes,” He whispered and then breathed out a small huff of a laugh, allowing his head to fall forward a little. “Yes, I am. I mean … this last week after Dad’s death was so fucking chaotic. I barely had time to … I couldn't apologize.”

“And yet he forgave you.” Ben hummed with a soft smile on his face.

“Because he’s Diego and he always forgives little old me when I’m doing my ‘puppy eyes thing’.” He shook his head. “But can he really forgive me for the shit I’ve done when we were together? I mean … I _hurt_ him, Ben. I didn't _just_ steal from him. I broke his heart and I stomped on it because it was easier for me than to turn my life around. I hated myself for so long for being this way.” 

“I’m not gonna pretend that I know what's happening in Diego’s head. I don't get why he forgave you. I, personally, wouldn't have.” That stung a little more than it had any right to. Sober him knew, of course, that Ben was right and that he shouldn't be forgiven so easily. It still hurt to hear it out of Ben’s mouth that he wouldn't have forgiven him for the things he had done - if it were on Ben to forgive him, that was. “But Diego always saw something in you that you never saw. It's his biggest flaw.” Ben chuckled quietly. “If it helps, I don't think that they are dead, Klaus. We will see them again for sure and now get your ass up and find a job.” 

“Help me?” Klaus sighed and extended his hand to Ben. His brother rolled his eyes with a low chuckle before he got up from the ground and walked over to where Klaus was sitting. He was exhausted and his feet hurt from running around all day but he still grabbed Ben’s offered hand as his brother offered to pull him up. It helped that he wasn't completely alone in this situation and although he was glad that Ben was still with him … a part of him wished he wasn’t. It was that same self-destructive little voice in the back of his mind that usually steered him in the direction of trouble or complete disaster that now had this wish. And, right now, everything seemed to indicate that this was exactly where he was headed once more: disaster. 

When he was alone and scared he tended to do stupid shit. And, right now, he was alone and scared and Ben … poor, poor good old Ben, wouldn't be able to stop him from being scared and stupid. They had been here before, at the very same crossroads. And, if his family was dead, why should he try to stay clean and turn over a new leaf? He wanted to crawl into a hole and allow depression to take him and wash him away with booze and drugs. 

Just as it had been expected, Klaus had no luck as it came to finding a job in Dallas. People looked at him with suspicion and prejudice. Some openly called him all kinds of degrading slurs to kick him out of their stores, some just shook their heads in silence and pointed at the door. He didn't quite know which reaction he preferred.

As night fell, he was once again walking the streets with no job and one empty stomach. His situation had not notably gotten better so far and Ben was no help either. Ben was always just moping and moaning. _He_ should try and get a job! Instead, it was just Klaus who had to go hungry and cold. He ended up in a park when night fell and slumped down on a bench at the side of the path. He felt utterly exhausted and had no fucking idea when he had last eaten anything. He had found a half-eaten sandwich in a trashcan the other day and Ben had made a rather rude and very disgusted face while Klaus had eaten it. It was easy for ghost-boy to judge him for eating trash, of course. Not that it would be the first time.

“Tomorrow is another day” Klaus sighed as he sprawled out on the bench and tried to get comfortable. At least it wasn’t freezing outside anymore. Everything would be so much worse if the nights would be still freezing cold. Well, that was the good thing about being stranded in the south, he assumed. It was only February but Klaus could sleep outside without fearing that he would freeze to death. “It would be easier if I still had drugs, you know?”

“Yes,” Ben sighed. He sounded a lot more exasperated than he had any right to. For Ben it was easy. He didn't have to go hungry. He didn't need to feel tired and exhausted. He wasn’t the one forced to sleep out in the open like this, or who was cold in the middle of February. He just had to sit and look pretty for Klaus. It was moments like this when Klaus would remember with a vengeance that he was the reason his brother Ben never got the chance to move on and go to Heaven. Maybe he was allowed to bitch and moan, all things considered. “I know. But you got clean - for Diego. Don't throw that away.” 

“I know” He murmured. How could he forget that when he still saw those beautiful brown eyes staring back at him with so much hope and trust whenever he would close his eyes? How Diego had still been able to trust him or look at him as if he was not a raging dumpster fire, was beyond him. “I know, I know, I know. I won’t. Even if he’s … I won’t. I promised him.” 

“Good” Ben muttered and Klaus finally closed the eyes. He was tired and all he wanted was a few hours of rest before he would inevitably start roaming around again. He was just about to fall asleep, as he heard laughter wafting over to him on his little bench. He had lived long enough on the streets to recognize this sound, recognize the danger sizzling in the air. It was like the brewing of a thunderstorm on the horizon during summer, when the electricity would crackle in the air. He should get away but instead, he stayed where he was, his eyes closed tightly. Maybe they would just walk past him if he acted like he was sleeping.

The laughter came closer. He could hear footfalls on the gravel stone path that wound itself through the park like a snake. They stopped in front of the bench. Of course, they did. They always did. A hand landed on his shoulder hard to shake him. Klaus flinched under the impact but quickly played it off as him waking up as he blinked his green eyes open. He wasn’t surprised by the sight that greeted him as he came face to face with a group of three young guys. He could smell the booze they had consumed, see the glint of the half-empty beer bottles still in their hands, the hunger in their eyes.

“Look at that dude!” One of them cackled as he turned to look at his friend and then gesticulated at Klaus as if they hadn't seen him before. He turned back around to face Klaus just as he slowly sat up. “Don't you have a home, dude?”

“Oh,” Klaus murmured and shot them a grin. His heart was racing in his chest. This was all about playing his cards right and he had always been horrible at card games. “Oh, I must’ve fallen asleep, huh? Sorry, pals, long day. I should get going now.” He slowly stood up only for one of the guys to shove him back. He fell back hard on his ass and slammed with his back into the backrest of the bench. Since Cha-Cha and Hazel, Klaus barely had time to heal and his entire body seemed to explode with pain as his slowly healing wounds hit the wood of the bench with such force.

“Don't go” The one guy grinned. “Let's have a nice friendly chat first, dude. I saw you earlier at Miss Smith’s convenience store asking for a job.”

“Yeah, that was me,” Klaus replied with a lazy wave of his hand, still trying to play nice.

“You know, we are not very fond of homeless, jobless, junkies around here, fag.”

“We are a good Christian community” Another one chimed in and Klaus almost barked out a laugh. He would never tire of those good Christians and their way of mistreating others in the name of the little girl on the bike in the sky. 

“Klaus, don't do it” Ben groaned as Klaus breathed out a little chuckle. 

“Yeah, good Christians” He giggled. “Because all good Christians harass people that are down on their luck.”

He knew that this was a mistake but he also knew that it wouldn't have changed anything if he hadn't replied at all. Those guys were out for blood and Klaus was their favorite kind of target.

※※※※※※※

He had landed in 1960 two nights ago, spat out by a fucking wormhole that somehow no one seemed to have noticed. He hadn't even had time to fully understand his situation before he had been called into action by the scream of a woman who had been robbed by some thief right outside the alleyway where he had been stranded. After that, Diego had time to figure out that his siblings had not arrived with him, that he was seemingly alone, unable to grasp the implications behind that realization. 

What if they were dead? That was his first thought. What if Five had messed up so badly that everyone had died? What if he was the only one left? What if they had been scattered all across time and space? Would he ever see his siblings again? Would he ever see _Klaus_ again? The thought of what might have happened to Klaus was at the forefront of his mind 24/7.

Since he landed in Dallas, he had spent every waking minute walking the city, asking strangers about a tall man in laced-up leather pants with curly brown hair and tattoos. Most people had thrown one look at him and his get-up and ran off. He nearly even got arrested during his first night in the city. The thought of Klaus alone and scared somewhere was making him sick - not because he thought that Klaus couldn't handle himself but rather because he knew what kind of vices the other man has usually employed to deal with being alone and scared.

As the third night after his arrival in Dallas fell, Diego found himself in that same alleyway between Commerce and Knox once more, cursing under his breath. He could still feel Klaus’ lips on his, Klaus’ breath ghosting over his cheeks, the way his body had melted into his touch as if they had never spent any time apart, as if those endless years of them avoiding each other had never happened. If it hadn't been for those assholes kidnapping Klaus from the academy, Diego might have never realized that he still had the same feelings for this man that he had since he was a teenager. It seemed so fitting that they had now been torn apart just after they had found each other again. 

Their break up ten years ago had been his fault - though, at the time, it had seemed inevitable. They had been young and dumb and he should have known that forcing Klaus to do anything would only serve to destroy that fragile little thing that they had. But he had been nineteen, idealistic, naive, and controlling. He still remembered the words that they had thrown at each other in anger before he had kicked Klaus out of that tiny apartment in the bad part of town. For years, he had felt guilty about it. For years, he had listened to the police scanner, keeping an ear out for the man he loved. Every relationship after Klaus had been doomed from the start and when they had finally been reunited just days ago, he thought that finally, they would be able to start over, make it work this time. 

He remembered the cold dread that had washed over him as he had looked around the house for Klaus after the attack from Hazel and Cha-Cha. He remembered the fear that Klaus might have been killed or taken only to find him in that motel room with Eudora by his side. If she wouldn't have been there, he would have died and Klaus probably too. Finding him there, wrapped in that blood-stained towel around his narrow hips, covered in bruises and cuts, had put everything he knew about life and about love into perspective again. He hadn't even cared at that moment that Eudora was there as he had untied Klaus, pulled him into his arms, and pressed his lips to Klaus’. And, just like that, the deal had been sealed. It had taken more than a kiss, of course, but at least they had both known where they stood again and that there was still something between them, a fire that might never truly die out.

And now here he was. Alone. Not knowing if the man he loved was still alive or if he would ever see him again. He had wasted years being petty and angry. Years that he should have been spending with Klaus instead. 

At last, Diego left the alley again. He made it a habit to come back every day just to find out if his siblings might still arrive but for tonight he needed a proper place to sleep. He was tired after everything that happened. Right now, as he slowly walked the streets of Dallas, he started to feel the strain of everything - of the world ending, of Mom dying, of being reunited with his family, of being shot at by time-traveling assassins, and everything else that had happened. Right now, he felt like he was dragging his feet as if he was walking through quicksand as if he could hardly move a muscle. Down the street was a boarding house for bachelors where he probably would find a place to stay for a couple of days until he found a way to make money. 

He was just walking up to the boarding house when he heard a commotion coming from the alley across the street. There was a great deal of yelling involved and laughter from what appeared to be a group of men. He heard the sound of bottles smashing against stone. For a moment he paused. Maybe someone needed his help. Maybe he needed to have a look and take care of the situation. No, he thought, this was a problem for tomorrow. He was tired. He couldn't play Batman anytime something odd was going on. He was running on fumes. He walked up to the door of the boarding house and grabbed the doorknob, just as he heard someone screaming out in pain. 

And then Diego was moving before he even made the decision to intervene and help. He was running across the street, narrowly avoiding being hit by a lonesome car coming down the street, and dove into the dark alley. He could see them further down the alley: a group of three men and he heard the distinct sound of kicks hitting something soft and pliant on the ground before he saw that they were kicking the shit out of another person. 

“That's gonna teach you a lesson, faggot!” One of them laughed as he poured the rest of his beer on the man on the ground. Diego felt his blood boiling at the sight and at the words that were being spat. “You should leave town before we see you again because next time, we won’t be as friendly.”

“Who the fuck are you?” One of the men had finally noticed him approach the situation. “Walk away Beaner! This is none of your business!”

“I just fucking made it my business!” He growled before thundering his fist into the face of the one closest to him. He noticed that the guy’s fists were bloody. They didn't stand a chance against Diego even in the exhausted state he was in right now. He refrained from throwing his knives around too much since he came to Dallas but right now these thugs screamed for the attention of the cold steel. It took not even two minutes until he had dealt with all three of them - before they even realized what happened to them. Quickly, Diego went to pick up his knives before he turned to the person on the ground. He hadn't had time to actually look at the person until now but as he did, his heart stopped. 

Curly brown hair, pale skin, laced-up leather pants, a striped shirt, and naked feet as if the man on the ground had lost his shoes. 

“Klaus?” He all but whispered into the night. In the back of his head, alarm sirens were going off. He knew that they needed to get away before someone would find them and call the police. Klaus had his arms wrapped around his head to shield his face and head but now, at the sound of Diego’s voice, he slowly took his arms down and green eyes blinked up at him. 

“Oh my God! Klaus!” Be breathed out and fell to the ground beside the young man. He couldn't quite tell if Klaus even recognized him at first. He seemed confused and dazed from the beating he had received. His face was covered in blood, a stark contrast to his pale skin. His nose looked broken, his lips torn open, a cut going through his left eyebrow. Blood was clotted in his hair from a wound on his head.

“Diego?” Klaus whispered.

“Yeah, it's me!” Thank God. Thank God, Klaus recognized him. He was alive and he was here and he recognized him. And he was bleeding all over the place. “It's me! Fuck … Fuck we need to get you to a hospital!”

“No,” Klaus murmured as he tried to sit up with a wince. He had a hard time getting his body to behave the way he wanted it to and Diego winced at the sight. “No hospital, Dee. It's okay, I’ve had worse.”

He knew that Klaus was right about that but that didn't make it any better. Years on the streets of the City had made Klaus tough as nails. He knew that. Klaus didn't need to be babied. He knew that. For a second, Diego just hovered uselessly, not knowing what to do and how to act. Everything inside of him screamed to just kiss him and pull him in his arms but he was too afraid to hurt him. Too afraid to touch him.

“Ain’t Mama getting a kiss?” Klaus murmured and almost startled a laugh out of Diego. He didn't need to be told twice, though, as he already pulled Klaus into his arms and all but smashed their lips together. He could taste the blood in his mouth but that didn't keep him from kissing Klaus and it didn't seem to deter Klaus either. He felt Klaus’ fingers in his hair, grabbing hard, pulling and twisting, hungry for the closeness between them before they slowly separated again.

“I needed that” Klaus whispered and he felt his breath ghost over his lips. “I thought you were dead…”

“Lets … let's get you somewhere safe, okay?” His voice sounded shaky even to his own ears. His heart was racing, his hands were clammy. Klaus was alive but after everything that had happened … it seemed all so fragile now. He couldn't help the panic rising inside of him just by looking at Klaus. “We need to patch you up, Baby.”

“I don't think that I’m gonna walk very far, Tiger.”

“Don't worry” He hummed and turned around to present Klaus his back. “Giddy up.”

※※※※※※※

He didn't quite know how he had managed to get Klaus to that motel in the ‘black’ part of town. The boarding house had been out of the question but the motel owner didn't care much about the kind of customers that they might be. Two young men wanting one room would raise eyebrows. The moment they walked into their room, however, Diego felt like breaking down immediately. He had been tired before this little stunt but right now he felt like passing out. Still, he carefully sat Klaus down on the bed because he doubted that the other man would be able to even keep on his feet. 

In the light of the motel room, Klaus’ injuries looked even worse. If he would sit down next to Klaus, he would not get up again. So, he walked over to the tiny green bathroom, took one of the off-white towels from a hook next to the sink, and soaked it in warm water before returning to Klaus. He hadn't moved since Diego had left him but his eyes were sharp and alert, never leaving his face.

“Hey…” Diego muttered as he sat down next to Klaus on the edge of the bed and started cleaning the blood off his face. The towel came away red after the first wipe over Klaus’ left cheek. A part of him wanted to go back to the alley and kill those three guys. He was catapulted back to the moment he had found Klaus in that motel room. How he had cleaned him up afterward, how he had dressed his wounds with Pogo’s help, and got him through withdrawal - all while the apocalypse was looming over them. He would do it all again in a heartbeat. “Remember that one time you turned around during dinner to the empty doorway and said _‘Sir, please stop showing me your penis, I’m not interested in it’_?”

Klaus almost burst out laughing at the memory but he winced in pain instead and breathed out a wheezing little chuckle. “There was this ghost of this creepy old dude. He always waved his schlong around. In my defense, I was more interested in the schlong of another person at that time.”

He felt his ears grow hot and pinched Klaus’ leg but never stopped cleaning him up. Klaus smelled bad but Diego was certain that he didn't smell much better. After cleaning off all the blood, he sighed in exhaustion. He took Klaus’ hands in his and kissed his knuckles. “Let's take a bath, there is a bathtub here.”

“Diego, please” Klaus murmured all seriously. “you don't need to keep seducing me, I am already hot and bothered by your tantalizing presence.”

“Mhm, yeah, Baby … I think you might have a concussion.” He joked before getting up again. “Let me run the bath.” 

The bathroom was even more 60s than the room was but it had its charm - even despite the avocado color, or perhaps exactly because of it. Avocado bathrooms were having a comeback in 2019, after all. At least it looked kinda clean. So, he turned on the faucet, watched the water come out brown before it turned clear again, and started filling up the bathtub. Five minutes later he helped Klaus to get into the hot water and climbed in behind him shortly after. It had been over a decade since they had been together like this, naked, skin to skin. In the short time after reuniting at Dad’s funeral and the apocalypse, they hadn't gotten much time alone together, let alone time to be naked together. Not that fucking Klaus had been his first priority with the impending end of the world ahead of them.

It was so strange and still so familiar. It was like wrapping up in an old blanket, comfortable and soft. It was what he had been looking for ever since they had broken up. He had tried to find it in different people, in Eudora and other men and women along the way even though he had known from the start that he would not find it with someone else. Klaus had held his heart since they were fifteen years old and Diego had never managed to get it back. Klaus was a skilled thief, after all. He had stolen his heart without him noticing and now it was Klaus’ most prized possession. Sure, he had hurt Diego and Diego had hurt him but he had forgiven Klaus a long time ago. Loving others hurt. That was natural. And Klaus he loved so much that he couldn't breathe sometimes just thinking about him and how much he missed him.

“What happened?” Diego finally asked. “Today, I mean.”

“Oh … just … people not being very fond of homeless homos, I guess.” Klaus tried to laugh it off as he always did. “I was just minding my own business, trying to find work, trying to sleep on that bench, and then those guys came and had a problem with it. Not that it would have been the first time. I managed to get away when they were discussing tying me to their truck and dragging me down main street but they chased me down like a dog.”

“I should’ve killed them” He muttered as he closed his arms around Klaus from behind. His entire body was a canvas painted in blacks and blues and Diego barely knew where he could or couldn't put his hands. 

“You are an incurable romantic” Klaus whispered and he felt the trembles wrecking his body. He didn't need to see his face to know that he was crying. He didn't pry. He didn't force Klaus to turn around or to speak about it any more than he already had. He was making fun of the situation, yes, but they both knew how deeply it had affected him. Years on the streets of the City might have made Klaus tough as nails but that didn't mean that he wasn’t affected by the things that were happening to him. He remembered holding him in his arms after the kidnapping. He remembered how Klaus had woken up screaming from nightmares or how he had found him unable to breathe from a panic attack. Soon, Diego knew, what happened tonight would hit Klaus like a fucking freight train. And he would be there to pick up the pieces like he always were. 

“So … the 60s, huh?” He murmured into Klaus’ hair to change the topic. It hurt too much. To imagine the pain and the fear Klaus had gone through tonight - or at that motel ... or any other time on the streets. 

“Yeah…”

“Where are the others?”

“I don't know,” Klaus replied. His voice sounded hoarse and the sniffle gave him away. Still, Diego acted as if he was oblivious to his tears. Klaus would take his comfort from him if he wanted it. He would cry into his chest openly if he wanted Diego to comfort him. “I thought I was all alone - sorry, Ben and I, of course. I thought you guys were all dead and that I had to start over on my own.”

Ben. Yeah, that was a thing now too. He had yet to get used to the idea of Ben being around. Apparently, Ben was here with them now too and the thought made him a little uneasy. “When did you arrive?”

“A few days ago, I guess. Maybe a week. I went back to that alley, again and again, looking for all you guys, trying to find at least one of you. I was … so fucking afraid that I’d lost you again” Well, that came unexpectedly. He pressed his lips to Klaus’ head in response to that. 

“You’re never getting rid of me.” Diego smiled as he pulled him closer and nuzzled his nose into Klaus’ soft curls. “We wasted too much time already.”

“I would really love to fuck you now” Klaus murmured quietly and startled another laugh out of Diego’s throat. He knew Klaus’ body better than his own. He knew every valley and every rising of his torso by heart could paint a picture of his body on a canvas just from memory alone. His fingers had trailed paths along those sinful long legs thousands of times. He knew the sounds Klaus made when he was in the thralls of lust, knew the way his toes would go numb when he had an orgasm or how his stomach would tighten and tremble right before it happened. He knew how his green eyes would become dark, murky lakes, glazed over by desire, and how it felt when he would rake his blunt nails down Diego’s back in ecstasy. “But I think we might need to wait with that for a couple of days.”

“I guess so too.” He hummed into his curls. A part of him hated it that he couldn't take him right here and now in this ugly green bathtub. Another part of him hoped that they would have all the time in the world from now on. 

As they later lay in bed together, Diego protectively curled around the sleeping form of the man he loved, he felt safe for the first time since he arrived in this time period. They still had no clue where the others were or what happened to them, if they would ever see them again but at least they had each other. And, for now, it seemed as if they were right back where they started from. Just the two of them against the rest of the world. 

**Author's Note:**

> Tell me what you think! It makes my heart go doki-doki


End file.
